Unique medieval belts are presented at the Vitebsk Art Museum
Such belts were an integral part of the male costume of the nobility of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. They got their name because they were usually worn over a kontusz – an outer garment with cut, hanging sleeves. The belts not only complemented the costume but were considered a symbol of dignity, noble ancient lineage, high social status, and prosperity of their owner. In addition, they were used in the ceremony of knighting, in parental blessings of the young, and hung in temples as a talisman, a sign of good strength.
In the 18th – early 19th centuries, famous Belarusian magnates Radziwiłł, Sapieha, and Ogiński began to establish manufactories called "persiarni" (silk weaving workshops), as products from masters from the Ottoman Empire, Persia, Iran, and China were considered the best.
But soon, Belarusian belts began to be valued no less than Eastern examples and even surpassed them. Especially those produced in Slutsk. The products of this manufactory were self-valuable works of art. Some factories in France used Slutsk belts as a benchmark, a mark of quality. The exhibition features a specimen made in Lyon, which bears the mark "Sluck".
In total, the exhibition presents 8 items from various manufactories in Poland, Russia, France, and Belarus. The most valuable is a Slutsk belt from the second half of the 18th century. This is a true rarity, considering that only five examples of this manufactory have survived in Belarusian museums (our regional museum only has fragments).
It is also symbolic that the cornflower, a flower that transports us from the depths of centuries to the present day, becoming a symbol of a festival uniting arts from different countries, is used in its ornament.
The exhibition was brought to Vitebsk by Sergey Kozlovsky, the owner of the largest collection of kontusz belts in Belarus. His ancestors began collecting it, from whom he inherited not only the rarest specimens but also a love for the art of old masters.
The exhibition is complemented by reproductions of portraits of the Radziwiłł family, the originals of which are housed in the National Art Museum of Belarus. The collection was first presented three years ago at this very museum and was a great success. Now, residents and guests of the festival capital can also see it.
By the way, Vitebsk is directly related to the revival of an ancient craft. A group of VSTU teachers, led by Associate Professor Galina Kazarnovskaya, has restored the lost technology of making Slutsk belts based on preserved samples. This technology formed the basis of a modern loom manufactured in Germany based on the developments of Vitebsk scientists.
Today, it is installed at the RUP "Slutsk Belts" enterprise, which has already produced several copies of original historical examples. One of them was presented to the President of Belarus and is now kept at the Palace of Independence, another was presented to Patriarch Kirill in honor of his 70th birthday.
Tatsiana Pasternak. Photos by Anton STEPANISHCHEV. "Vitebskiye Vesti".